Federal Custody
by Anonamus-A
Summary: Peter finds Neal one night, staring at an old photo. Who's it of? A sixteen year old girl. And Neal is ready to fight for her. I mean, how much trouble can a teenage girl cause? Crappy summary, better than it sounds. Language. Some violence. Neal/Sara. -A
1. Picture

A/N: To those of you who have read Mozzie's Book of Quotes, don't worry, this has nothing to do with the first story, even though this starts in a way similar to the ending of "A Thing Like that is Enough to Knock the Daydreams from Anyone's Head." And if you're reading Half the Problem, Gale has no part in this story. I'm still trying to decide if I'm going to put Gia in it though. If you think I should, let me know. –A

P.S. the timeline for Neal's age probably won't match the show, just bare with me. –A

Chapter 1: Picture

Neal sat at his table, a glass of wine in one hand, and a tattered picture in the other. He was so absorbed with memories of the people smiling up at him from the photo, that he didn't hear his door open, didn't hear footsteps coming in or stop behind him.

They young man jumped when a man behind him spoke. "Who's that?" Neal spun around and saw Peter. Quickly, he flipped the picture over, but it was too late; the agent grabbed it and took a seat across from him.

"Please, give me the picture back," he said quietly. But no, Peter was busy studying it carefully.

"Who is this?" he repeated.

"Well, that would be me," Neal said smartly. Peter glared at him, Neal stared blankly back.

"I see that. I was referring to the girl who looks a hell of a lot like you," Peter said, holding the picture back up, his thumb under the face of a young girl. The girl was ten years old in that picture. She was smiling hugely, showing perfect, white teeth. Her eyes were ice blue, the same shade as Neal's, to a tee. Her dark brown hair fell in ringlets past her shoulders. She was on Neal's back, her arms around his neck. She had her legs wrapped around his waist, his arms holding her up.

Neal sighed in defeat. "She's my daughter." Peter stared at him, mouth hanging open just a little.

"You have a daughter?" The young man nodded. The agent studied the picture again. "What's her name?"

"Chris," Neal told him honestly. Peter looked at him questioningly. "It's short for Christeen." The agent nodded once.

"How old is she?" he asked.

"In the picture, she's ten, but-" but Peter cut him off.

"When was it taken?"

"About a month before you caught me. She's sixteen now."

"Was this the last time you saw her?" The young man nodded. "She looks just like you, you know." This made his friend smile.

"So I've been told. Everyone says she doesn't have an ounce of her mother in her."

"Who is her mother?" He was clearly thinking Kate, but that's not the case.

"Her name is Pamela Green. And she hates me with a passion."

"How can she hate you? You had a kid together." Neal laughed darkly for a moment.

"Well, a certain FBI agent made it kind of hard to stay with them. I didn't really want her to go down with me for harboring a fugitive, and I didn't want them to have to move with me while I was running. So, the only other option was to leave."

"I'm going to guess you went for visits," Peter said, holding the picture up for emphasis.

"As much as possible. But as Chris got older, she wanted me around them less and less. She said that she didn't want Chris to have to go through the same thing every time I came. She hated having to watch me leave as much as I hated leaving."

"So she told you no more visits?" Neal nodded.

"When Chris was three, she told me she'd rather Chris grow up not knowing her father, than grow up with a father who she never gets to see, and can never be there for her."

"That's harsh." The young man nodded in agreement and took a sip of the wine.

"Not like I listened, though. I came around when Pam wasn't there. Chris always loved seeing me. When she was eight, she told me that she wanted to live with me, not Pam."

"What did you say?"

"I told said…" he paused, recalling the exact words. "'I'm sorry, Chris, but my job makes it so I'm always moving, I can never stay in one place for too long.' She understood that, anyway."

"Does she know what Daddy's 'job' is?" the agent asked with an amused smile. Neal couldn't hold back a smile of his own.

"Yeah, she learned that about a month before that picture was taken," he told his friend.

"So is this the last time you saw her?" Neal nodded.

"I was actually going to surprise her for her birthday two months after that, but…" Now Peter felt a little guilty. A little. They sat there for a while, just talking about the girl Peter never knew existed in his young friend's life. One thing he picked up, something Neal wouldn't tell him outright, was that Neal wanted, no _needed_, to see his daughter again. Soon.


	2. Family Reunion

A/N: Hey. Hope you're liking is so far. Yes, I realize now (after posting it and reading it on a live preview) that I have Peter ask the same question twice. Completely unintentional. I wrote the first half at a different time than the second half. Anyway, on with the story. Hope you like it. –A

Chapter 2: Family Reunion

Peter all but barricaded himself in his office the next day. He was supposed to be working on their latest case, a string of museum robberies, but he found himself unable to focus whenever he tried. Instead, he was trying to find a Pamela Green. Honestly, it wasn't hard. Unsurprisingly, she had a record. The agent shook his head as he read the list to himself.

"B and E, assault with a deadly weapon, and armed robbery."

"Who are we talking about?" a familiar voice asked, one that he didn't realize had come in. Sure enough, Neal was standing there, hands in his pockets, giving his partner a questioning look.

"No one," he lied as he exited out of the window. Neal gave him a look that said 'sure it's not' but he didn't ask anymore questions. Peter glanced at his watch.

"Looks like it's about to knock off. I think we're dead enough today that we can get away with cutting out a bit early." The young man smiled in agreement. The two exited the office and headed towards the elevators, only stopping so Neal could grab his hat.

"Give you a ride?" Peter asked. A bit confused (it was the middle of summer, and that's usually when Peter let him walk home) Neal got in the car.

After a few minutes, Peter turned, but not in the right direction. "Um, Peter? June's is the other way…"

"I know," Peter told him. "But there's somewhere we have to go first."

"Where?" Neal was getting nervous now, and his face showed it, but Peter only smiled and chuckled a bit.

"You'll see." His tone said that the conversation was over, and Neal didn't question him further.

WC

Twenty minutes later, Peter pulled up to the side of the road. Neal looked at him questioningly as the agent cut the engine and started to get out. Neal followed suit and walked, still confused, up the porch behind his partner. Peter knocked on the door and they waited.

"Peter," Neal whispered. "Why are we here?"

"Trust me, you'll know as soon as you see who's behind…" the door started to creak open, "door number one." Neal looked up as it opened and his jaw dropped open a little. She had short, blonde hair and moss green eyes. She looked like someone who used to be beautiful, but had long since let herself go.

"What the hell are you doing here, Caffrey?" she asked in a gruff tone that can only come from years of smoking.

"Pam?"

"What are you doing here?" she repeated.

"I brought him," Peter said.

"And who are you? His boyfriend?" They both stared wide-eyed at her, and gave each other disgusted look.

"Ew, no," Neal said. "He's a… co-worker." She looked him over a few times, hopefully noticing his wedding ring, and finally spoke again.

"Were ya work?"

"I… that's not really any of your business," he told her after a quick look at the young man who stood uneasily behind him.

"Whatever." She pulled out a pack of cigarettes and a lighter, pulled a cigarette out, and lit it. Neal rolled his eyes. "You didn't answer my question, though, Caffrey."

"I came to see Chris," he told her, catching on to why Peter brought him here.

"She ain't here, Caffrey. Get lost." Neal just glared at her.

"Where is she?" Pam shrugged.

"How should I know?" Peter looked at her like she was insane.

"Maybe because you're her _mother?_" She just rolled her eyes at him.

"Pam, where is she?" Neal repeated.

"She's at a friend's house. Geo, or something."

"Gia?" Neal asked. She nodded. Peter wondered vaguely how his friend knew that.

"Get lost, Caffrey," she said. Then there was a noise from inside. A girl's voice drifted out.

"Who's there mom? Is it Gia?"

"No, why?" Pam was clearly irritated that her lie was ruined.

"Because she's _supposed _to be in detention," she said.

"No, it's just a couple men looking for directions. Go to your room," she ordered over her shoulder. But, of course, as soon as she turned back to face the partners a head appeared over her shoulder. As the girl caught sight of Neal, her soft smile slid off her face.

"Daddy?" she whispered. He smiled gently and nodded. With that, Chris pushed past her mother and threw herself into Neal's arms. She cried happily against his chest as he hugged her back and held her close. He finally had his baby girl back and couldn't be happier.


	3. Honesty is a More Challenging Game

Chapter 3: Honesty is a More Challenging Game

(he, he! Gotta love quotes from the show!)

After Chris' torrent of tears stopped, she let go of her father and all but drug him in the house, despite Pam's protests. They went down a short hall and turned left, entering a small living room. Chris pushed Neal onto a shabby couch and sat next to him, smiling hugely. Pam sat on a chair as far from the young man as she could, glaring daggers at him. Peter stood awkwardly by the doorway.

"Dad, I didn't know you were out!" He looked at her, shocked.

"Yeah, for a while. I wanted to come see you, but I couldn't find you." The teenager shrugged as if she could care less.

"I thought you'd be in till I was eighteen," she told him, earning questioning looks from the partners. "You know, with the four years from escaping." Neal rolled his eyes.

"I see your mother spared no details," he said coolly.

"Don't tell me you escaped again, Caffrey," Pam said from the corner of the room. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw her eyeing the phone.

"Not at all."

"So they _did _let you out of you cage," she said, smiling sweetly. Neal really had to work to control his emotions.

"Not entirely…" he mumbled. Chris looked up at him, eyes wide and confused.

"What do you mean?" With a sigh, the young man hitched up his left pant leg, revealing the tracker.

"Nice blinking jewelry," Pam commented before glancing up at the man by the door. "Am I to guess he's your handler?" Neal nodded once.

"Handler?" Chris asked. "What are you talking about?"

"Chris," he said, looking her right in the eyes. "Peter's an FBI agent. We made a deal that got me out of prison. I share my knowledge of white collar crimes to help them catch other criminals while I serve out the my sentence." She nodded, understanding completely, and turned to her mother.

"And you said he'd rot behind bars," she scoffed. Pam just glared at the young man. Finally, she stood.

"Neal, Peter. I think it's time for you to leave."

"Mom…" Chris complained.

"No, Chris. They're leaving."

"Fine," she huffed, crossing her arms and pouting. "But I walking with Dad out to his car," she said. Pam rolled her eyes and stalked out. Neal and Chris stood and headed for the door. Before they got there, Chris grabbed a pad of paper and a pen. She scribbled something down and passed it to her father.

"It's my cell number," she told him, smiling. Neal ripped it off and grabbed the pen from her hand. He wrote down his number and passed the pen and pad to her.

"And that's mine." With that, they walked out and walked to the sidewalk with the partners.

"It's been nice meeting you, Agent…"

"Burke," he filled in. She smiled and nodded.

"Right. Nice meeting you Agent Burke. And Daddy…" Her voice trailed off.

"I know baby," he said, hugging her again. "Just call me, okay?" She nodded again. "I love you," he said as he climbed in the car. She said the same, though he didn't hear it, and waved as they drove away.


	4. Ditcher

Chapter 4: Ditcher

That night, Neal expected Chris to call. But no call came. Around nine thirty, he broke down and tried calling her, but it went straight to voicemail. The only reason he knew it wasn't a wrong number was the message, clearly in her voice.

"Big Brother is watching," it said, making the ex-con smile. There was a slight giggle on the message. "Leave a message at your own risk!" Then there was a dial tone and he stood there for a moment, thinking his words through.

"Chris, it's Ne- it's dad. Call me when you get this, 'kay? Love you. Bye." Then he cut the line and gave up waiting. This wasn't going as well as he'd hoped. Not at all. He poured himself a glass of wine and went out to the balcony to drink it.

WC

The next morning, Neal have blinked awake, slowly registering the fact that it was Friday, his days off this week. With a small groan, he pushed himself out of bed and headed to the bathroom. After a quick shower and a shave, he got dressed for the day. He dressed simply. Faded blue jeans and a white t-shirt.

When he returned to his apartment, Neal found June sitting there, a cup of coffee in hand. She smiled sweetly as he sat across from her, and pushed a second cup over to him. Neal accepted it gratefully. They sat there in silence for a while, enjoying June's fresh Italian roast. Finally, she spoke.

"Neal, dear, I'm going out for a while today. So you'll have the house to yourself, unless one of you… friends stops by," she said with a smile. He nodded, smiling brightly back.

"That's fine, June." She stood to leave. "Have fun." With that, the door snapped shut and he heard foot steps retreating down the stairs.

WC

Around noon, Neal heard the doorbell ring. A few moments later, he heard the door shut, followed by the sounds of footsteps coming up the stairs. They slowed to a stop in front of his door and there was a pause before whoever gave a few uncertain knocks.

"It's open!" he called. Slowly, the door creaked open and a nervous face peered around. It was Chris. He smiled warmly and invited her in. She smiled back and walked slowly over to him, sitting opposite of him at the table.

"I tried calling you last night," he told her after a moment of silence.

"I don't doubt that," she said, "but she found your number in my room after you left."

"So?"

"So, she took my phone indefinitely." He nodded in understanding.

"I'm sorry," he told her, earning a shrug.

"Not like I call and text people often." They sat in silence for a moment.

"So how's Gia?" he asked, vaguely remembering the black girl Chris introduced him to a few years ago.

"She's good. Got another detention," she added, making him laugh a little. Then he realized something.

"Wait, isn't it summer?" he asked.

"Yeah, but the school we go to goes year-round," she explained.

"Oh… wait, it's Friday. If you're school goes all year, shouldn't you be _in _school? Like, now?" She smiled.

"I called and said I was sick."

"Can't only parents and legal guardians do that?" Sure, it's been a while since he was in school, but he was sure students couldn't call themselves in sick.

"Well, I do a pretty good 'Mom,'" she told him with an innocent smile, earning her a disapproving look from Neal.

"Chris…" he said. She rolled her eyes.

"You sound like mom," she said.

"You really shouldn't ditch school," he told her sternly.

"I've heard _that _a million times," she mumbled. Neal could realize that he was fighting a loosing battle and let it drop. There was silence and he studied her carefully.

She was wearing the jeans shorts that were just sliced off above the knees (he saw that before she sat down), and a blue spaghetti strap with purple stripes. In the hollow of her throat was a medium-sized silver, heart-shaped locket. The young man smiled at this, remembering it very well. It was what he'd given her for her tenth birthday, the day the picture he had of her was taken. He could recall the exact wording on it. _No matter how far the world may take me, my heart remains with you._

"You still wear the locket," he pointed out. She smiled and took it off, passing it over to him.

"Open it," she ordered. Neal complied, finding two pictures. One was the one from the day she received it. The other was from her fifth birthday, set in a park. Even then, she was beautiful and looked exactly like him. With a smile, he snapped it shut again and handed it back. A soon as it was in her hand, it seemed, she had it back around her neck.

The two sat talking for a while. Talking about her school, friends, and hobbies/extra-curricular activities. He told her about the deal, what he did for the Bureau, his friendship with Peter and El. She asked about Moz, who she remembered from when she was eight-ish, and Kate, who he'd mentioned before. He had to, grudgingly tell her that Kate was dead. She was said and told him she was sorry. He told her about Sara, who she said she'd like to meet sometime, and June, who she thought sounded sweet. The day passed quickly as they caught up, and Neal wished he'd never missed any of her life. No matter, though. They were together now, and that's all that mattered.


	5. Confessions

Chapter 5: Confessions

Hours passed as the two talked. Then the clock chimed in the corner, telling the two that it was five o'clock. Chris stared at it, slightly wide-eyed.

"Shit!" she said.

"Chris!" She looked innocently up at him. "Language." This made her roll her eyes.

"Mom doesn't even say anything if I cuss!" she whined.

"Well, I'm not you're mother, now am I?"

"Thank God for that," she muttered, and Neal couldn't help but agree. "But I'm late, school ended an hour ago, and she's not gonna be happy I'm late."

"Why?"

"Well, I didn't have any extra-curriculars today, so she expected me home at three-thirty," she explained.

"Tell her you had a detention," he suggested. This made her stop in her tracks.

"That may just work…" she said to herself. "Bye, Dad. See ya later," she called over her shoulder as she headed to the door.

"Bye, baby." The door snapped shut and she was gone.

WC

It was close to eight o'clock. There was another knock on his door. Slowly, he walked over and pulled it open. On the other side stood a smile Sara. He smiled warmly as he stepped aside to let her in. She stopped in front of him as he closed the door and kissed him for a moment when he turned to face her. Together, they walked to the table and sat down.

"Wine?" he asked, earning a bright smile and a nod. With a smile of his own, he stood to get the glasses. After a short moment's contemplating, he chose the wine and poured it in the glasses. Neal turned back to the table and sat down. As he passed the glass over to her, he saw that she was looking at something. A picture.

Sara looked at him questioningly as she held it up. "Who's this?" she asked. It was his picture of Chris.

"About that," he said slowly. "I was going to tell you, really, I was."

"Tell me what? Neal, who is this?" she repeated.

"Her name is Christeen Caffrey," he told her quietly and gave her time to absorb what he said.

"Is she… is she your _daughter?_" He nodded solemnly. "Is she Kate's?"

"No, her mother's name is Pamela Green."

"Why didn't you tell me about her?"

"I didn't tell a lot of people about her," he stated, making Sara roll her eyes.

"Neal." The young man sighed.

"Well, it's not exactly something appropriate for general conversation," he pointed out. "Like I said, I _was _going to tell you… eventually." She smiled a little, giving a little chuckle.

"Does Mozzie know about her?" she asked.

"Yes, Mozzie's met her… twice."

"How about Peter and El?"

"Peter found out recently, and El… only if Peter's told her about Chris, which I'm sure he has," he told her.

"Did Kate?" she asked in a small voice. Neal looked down at his hands and bit his lip again.

"No. I told Chris about Kate, but Kate never knew about Chris."

"Why not?" Sara asked. Neal shrugged.

"Didn't really concern her." Sara gave him a questioning look. "Look, Chris was my daughter, and had nothing to do with Kate. Plus… Kate knew Pam…" He shook his head.

"Ah, I think I get it," she said. "They didn't get along?"

"Not in the slightest." After that, they stayed there, talking about anything and everything Neal knew about his daughter, which was a lot less than it _should _have been, but way more than it _could _have been, given the circumstances. In the end, Sara said that she would love to meet Chris some time.

"I think that can be arranged," Neal told her with his normal, charming smile.


	6. Down to Business

A/N: Okay, so the last episode was amazing! My favorite parts? Peter being 'giddy as a school boy' (my mom said that one…), the Blind Man's Bluff, the 'shrinky dink', and the end. And of course the new title sequence was interesting… :) Oh, did anyone see the Ark of the Covenant in the treasure? Can't wait for next week's episode, Deadline. Anyway, I've bored you long enough. On with the chapter! –A

Chapter 6: Down to Business

It was Saturday. That meant it was time to get back to work. Chris walked purposefully to the park a few blocks from her apartment, her light blue backpack slung over one shoulder. A few adults she passed gave her weird looks, which didn't bother her. It was the weekend, at nine in the morning, with a light mist falling. Regardless, she trudged on.

In about ten minutes, she was standing by the fountain in the park. Chris casually looked around, careful not to draw attention to herself, and canvassed the area. There were only a few people here, and most of them were joggers, earbuds all but glued in their ears. On the far side of the park, Chris saw an old woman walking some sort of dog, like a schnauzer or something, but the lady didn't worry her.

After another twenty minutes, she was getting annoyed. Her… client still had yet to show, and he was supposed to have been there fifteen minutes ago. She was just about to say 'screw it,' and leave, when a large boy in a baggy, black hoodie walked up to her.

"Chris," he said, making her roll her eyes.

"You're late," she told him, anger coloring her tone.

"So?"

"_So,_ I don't put up tardiness in business. I have half a mind to walk away now."

"But I already paid you!" She shrugged

"Then maybe you should be on time next time," she said as she started to walk away. She'd only taken a few steps when he gabbed her bag.

"Come on, Chris. I'm sorry! I had to sneak out, I'm grounded and not supposed to leave the house unless…" but he trailed off, and the unfinished statement made her smile.

"Aw, not allowed to leave without mommy or daddy?" she mocked in a baby voice. He hissed out an irritated sigh. "This isn't armature hour. I take my work very seriously, and it's not my problem if you don't."

"Please, Chris. They'll never let me out of the house if they see the _real _on."

"Fine," she said, and he sighed in relief, but a sly smile crossed her face. "But it'll cost you."

"What do you want?"

"Ten," she told her

"Five!" he said.

"Ten or no deal." He just stood there, mouth hanging open slightly. With another small smile, Chris began to retreat again.

"Wait!" he called, digging in his pocket and pulling out his wallet. With a sigh, he pulled a ten out and offered it to her. With a smug smile, she walked back over and took it.

"I knew you'd see it my way," she said, making him roll his eyes. Chris pulled her bag from her shoulder and sat on the damp edge of the fountain. She stuffed the money in the front pocket (the one with the small combination lock, she didn't take chances in New York with her money) and unzipped the largest pocket. Casting a final look around, she pulled out a manila folder and offered it out. He opened it and his eyes widened a little.

"This is good," he said with a satisfied nod.

"Duh! Of course it's good." With that, he put the folder in his own backpack and walked away. Re-zipping her bag, she began to follow suit. After walking for a moment, she decided to get a pasty and cappuccino from a near-by coffee shop. Chris pulled her little wallet out of her bag and opened it. She had twenty dollars in there, just some that she always carried. She was about to put it back when she caught a glimpse of what was behind her in the little mirror that was in the wallet. A man stood, pretending to read a paper, but was clearly staring at her. He had dark shades and a hat on, so she couldn't exactly see who it was, but she had a pretty good idea.

Rolling her eyes, Chris walked over to a bench on the side of the sidewalk and sat down. With a slight smile, she pulled her phone out of her pocket and flipped it open. She scrolled through the contact list and finally found the one she needed. Quickly, she typed her message.

_I see you! _With another sly smile, she pressed 'send' and watched her tail. It took a few seconds, but a confused look crossed his face as he pulled out his phone. He read the message before a 'I'm busted' looked replaced the confusion. He looked up at her and she waved a little. With a visible sigh, he stood and walked over, sitting down next to her.

"You know," she said, "you don't make a very good tail."

"Well, it was going well until you pulled out your wallet. Mirror?" With a cocky grin, she nodded. "Right, leave it to a girl to have a mirror at all times."

"What can I say, we like to look at ourselves." He snorted. "So why were you following me?"

"I didn't intend to, but I saw you waiting at the fountain for twenty minutes and couldn't resist trying to find out what you were up to."

"Why where you here in the first place?"

"Meeting with Moz. Hoping he can find out some information on our latest case."

"Ooh! What's the case?" Her curiosity piqued.

"A string of museum robberies." She nodded. "What were you up to, Chris?"

"Just some… business," she told him cryptically.

"Are you up to anything illegal?" he asked sternly, but with a hint of amusement.

"Not illegal, no."

"So you won't get in trouble if someone finds out?"

"Now, I didn't say that, I just said it wasn't illegal." Neal rolled his eyes, but an amused smile was playing on his face.

"Like father, like daughter," he mumbled. There was a long silence. "I thought you said your mother took your phone," he said.

"She did, but this is a burner. She doesn't know about it."

"So you couldn't have called me with that?"

"Gia was borrowing it," she explained. Another silence.

"Hey," he said, remembering something. "Remember how you said you wanted to meet Sara?" She nodded, eyes shining again. "I told her about you and she said she wanted to meet you too."

"Cool."

"So, how about tonight, you come over to my place, and I'll invite some people over?"

"Sounds like a plan… who all do you plan to invite?"

"Um… Sara, Peter and his wife, Elizabeth, Moz, and, if they want to come, Agents Diana and Jones."

"Why the last two?"

"Well, Peter said something about you and they overheard and said the wanted to, and I quote, 'see this for themselves.'" She laughed a little.

"Cool," she repeated.


	7. Party!

A/N: Okay, I'm sorry for the ungodly long break. I just got this idea and didn't feel like working on some of my other stuff I've been doing when I should have been working on this. I'd like to say I'll make up for the long break by posting a lot over the next few days, but that would be a lie. I have a friend coming over tomorrow, then we're going to the fair with my parents! I might try to post something before she gets here, but no promises. Then I'll probably post something Thrusday, assuming my mom doestn't make me finish cleaning my room... And probably more around mid-day Friday, but me and my parents are going to the fair on that day too. And I might get writer's block again, or be to lazy. Sorry if that happens! Hope you like this chapter though! -A

Chapter 7: Party!

Neal had told Chris to be at June's at around six. After a few more comments, her phone buzzed and she stood. "It's Gia. I gotta go."

"It's fine," he assured her.

"Crap!" she said when she read the text.

"What?"

"We were supposed to hang out tonight."

"Bring her with you," he said.

"You sure?" He nodded, giving her a reassuring smile. She grinned back. "Well, I gotta run. Love you, daddy," she said, flinging one arm around his neck before grabbing her bag and running off. He chuckled and shook his head.

It was about ten minutes later before Mozzie sat next to him. "Find anything?"

"No. My contacts are suprisingly silent." They said nothing for a moment.

"You remember Chris, right?" Neal asked a moment later.

"Yes. Perfect recall, remember?"

"Right. Well, she wanted to meet Sara, so I told her to come over and figured you would want to come too."

"I'll be there... are you inviting anyone besides Sara?" Mozzie asked wearily

"Yeah, Peter, El, Diana, and Jones." He saw Moz's distaste at the idea. "Grow up, Moz. They're not that bad. Just be there," Neal said, standing. "I've got to get back to the office."

WC

At five-thirty, Chris and Gia left, on their way to June's. Gia was tall and curvey. She had dark skin, silky brown hair, and warm brown eyes. As usual, Chris' bag was all but glued to her back. They walked casually, still continuing their conversation on new methods to keep their business alive.

"A 'study group' would be effective," Gia said.

"Maybe, but news would spread. And kids who get bad grades suddenly getting good grades is supsicous enough without it being our doing without a doubt. I just don't think text messages to 'subscribers' is a good idea. Any teacher with suspicions would just have to confencsate the phone when the kid is caught texting and we're toast."

"Email would be safer," Gia said.

"True... or Facebook chat. A private message that only the person it is sent to can read. Plus, neither can be used at school, so even if they get suspicious, they can't prove anything anywhere on campus."

"Well, I say we do both. Not everyone has Facebook, we can ask people to suscribe to one or the other."

"Good point... I'll send the mass text tomorrow with my email address to tell me which one they want to use. Oh, don't forget to tell Dani and Sam."

"Neither of them have Facebook, they have Myspace."

"Then they'll do the emial, we'll do Facebook." And by this time, they made it to June's. Chris glanced at her watch and saw that it was only five fourty-five. With a glance at each other, they walked up to the front door and rung the doorbell. A moment later, a cleaning lady opened the door and welcomed them in. June was waiting in the front room.

"Chris!" she said, walking over to the girls.

"Hello, June. This is my friend, Gia. Gia, this is June."

"Hello, June, it's nice to meet you," Gia said politely.

"It's nice to meet you too, dear," she said with a sweet smile. "Well, shall we go join the party?"

"Yes, ma'am," Chris said. They started up the stairs. At the top, they found themselves in front of Neal's door. June opened the door slowly and allowed the teenage girls to step in before her.

Inside, eight people were already waiting. Neal was leaning against the counter, a glass of wine in hand. A woman with strawberry blonde hair stood near him. Mozzie was sitting at the table, sightly apart from the rest. Two other women were standing with a third man near the glass doors to the patio, talking casually. Peter and a beautiful woman he assumed was Elizabeth Burke were sitting across from Mozzie, talking to him with amused looks on their faces. All heads turned to them when June closed the door.

"Chris," Neal said with a smile. "Hi, Gia," he added.

"Hey, Neal!" the girl next to Chris said. Neal and the woman he was talking with walked over. Chris threw her bag on the couch before turning to greet her.

"Chris, this is Sara Ellis. Sara, this is my daughter, Christeen."

"Nice to meet you, Chris," Sara said, holding out a hand. Chris took it, smiling her most charming smile. "God, Neal, you said she looked like you, but you didn't say she was a carbon copy." Neal shrugged.

"It's nice to meet you too, Sara," Chris said. Sara's attention turned to Gia. "This is my friend, Gia Thomas."

"Hey," Gia said, shaking Sara's hand.

"Hello." Neal led Chris over to the table, where the rest of the people were now gathered.

"Hello, dear," Elizabeth said standing up. "I'm Elizabeth Burke. It's great to finally meet you.

"You too."

"You already met Peter, and I'm sure you remember Mozzie," Neal said. "These three are Clinton Jones, Diana Barrigan, and Christie..." he paused. "You know, I don't even know her last name," he said in and amused tone, earing chuckles from the whole party.

"Hey," she said to the three.

"You know, not really what I imagined when you said Neal had a daughter, Peter," Jones said.

"Yeah," Diana agreed, "she doesn't seem very devious."

"Well, you haven't know me long enough to see that," Chris said with a sly smile. Again, everyone laughed.

The group talked casually, carefree. Then, at about eight, the door slammed shut and everyone jumped, spinning around.

"What the hell do you think you're doing, Caffrey?" she said in an inraged tone. Pamela Green was staring at Neal with malice in her moss-green eyes. _Shit! _Chris thought desperatly, while reamining unphased on the outside.


	8. Your Problem Now

A/N: Who saw the summer finale? It was the best summer finale in the series, in my opinion. And, in my mind, they win the award "Best Evil Cliffhanger in the History of Evil Cliffhangers." That takes skill! On with the story! Hope you're liking it, and I appologize once again for the delay. -A

Chapter 8: Your Problem Now

Everyone stared in muted shock at the angry woman that walked in, uninvited, and threw obsinities at the host. She glared between two people. Neal and Chris.

"Are you deaf?"

"No, Pam. I don't know what you mean."

"Why is my daughter here, without my premission, with school tomorrow?"

"She's my daughter too, unless you've forgotten, I didn't know she didn't ask premission before coming, and it's only eight, not midnight."

"Yeah, where were you when she was growing up? Where were you when she was sick and needed someone to take care of her? Where were you when she got hurt and was crying? Where were you when she had a nightmare and needed someone to comfort her?"

"Where were _you?_" Chris asked, losing the calm facade. "Oh yeah, that's right. You were out getting drunk, or with one of your boyfriends, hardly managing to keep a job for more than a few months." Everyone was shocked with her outburst, save for Gia, who was seemingly used to this speech.

"You don't know what you're talking about," Pam snapped.

"The hell I don't!"

"Chris," both parents warned, but she ignored them.

"Dad may not have been around much, but when he was, he was a hell of a lot better than you."

"Chris," Neal said. "Calm down. You don't mean-"

"Yes! I do mean it! And I can't stand it anymore! I can't stand _her _anymore!" Pam gritted her teeth.

"Fine. If you want to be a big brat, go right ahead. You think your father's such a great parent, you can live with him. She's your problem now, Caffrey," Pam said before turning and walking back to the door.

"Pam," he said, but it was too late. She was gone. There was an awkward silence. The hurt was evident on Chris' face. No one knew what to say. After several moments, Peter stood.

"I'll take you home, Chris." She was still frozen, so he grabbed her shoulder and led her to the door. Gia followed close behind. Before she closed the door behind her, Gia turned back.

"Sorry 'bout that folks. Later." And they too were gone after Gia picked up Chris' forgotten bag.

WC

Peter stopped the car in front of Chris' house, but the teens didn't get out.

"What's wrong?" Peter asked.

"She's not gonna let us in."

"How do you know that?" For an answer, she pointed to the porch. The light was dim, but Peter was just able to make out the shape of a two boxes, two garbage bags, and a suitcases. Pam had cleaned out Chris' room. "Get out. I'll talk to her." The three got out of the car and walked slowly to the door.

Peter knocked loudly on the door. "Come on, Pamela, open up. Let's just talk about this!" he shouted. No one came. He turned to Chris. "Do you have a key?" She nodded and pulled a key out from the bag Gia was holding. She tried it in the lock, but it wouldn't work. Chris sighed.

"The bitch changed the lock!"

"Language," Peter said.

"What are we gonna do now?"

"The only thing we can do until we get ahold of her. You'll stay with Neal." Without another word, they began loading the things into Peter's car. The ride back to June's was silent. When they got there, Peter took the two boxes, Chris took the two bags, and Gia got the suitcase. Gia opened the door for them. The only one's still there were Neal, Mozzie, June, and El. They were suprised when Peter and the girls came in, ladden with Chris' things.

"What happened?" Neal asked.

"She cleared out Chris' room and changed the lock. She wouldn't open the door.

"Well, you're more than welcome to stay here, dear," June said. "Actually, my daughter's old room has been empty for a while, since she and Cindy have moved out, if you'd rather stay there. There's still things in there you can use."

"Thank you, June," Chris said warmly. "That would be lovely." So June led them out of Neal's appartment and down one flight of stairs to a long hallway. About half way down, She opened a door, leading to a very large bedroom. There was a bed without sheets, a desk with a lamp and a somewhat old computer that had a small film of dust on it, a few chairs, a small dresser, and a small couch that pulled out into a bed.

"Wow," Chris said. She turned to thank June, but was shocked to see that she was gone. Shrugging, they walked in to set their burdens down on the floor near the bed. She was about to open one of the boxes to see if her mother had given her sheets, but June walked in, followed by the maid, Rhonda. Rhonda was holding a bundle of fresh, clean sheets. She made her way slowly over and spread them on the bed, and sat a second set on the couch.

"You are more than welcome to stay here for the night too, Gia," June said, earning a smile from the taller girl.

"Thank you, June." With that, June, Rhonda, and Peter left, leaving Chris and Gia alone with Neal. There was an awkward silence before Gia got the hint. "I think I left my phone at the table. I'm gonna go grab it." She made her way hastily towards the door, shutting it behind her. Still, he said nothing for a moment.

"I'm sorry your mother kicked you out," he finally told her.

"Don't be. It was kinda my fault. She told me that she didn't want me around you, and I am out too close to my curfue."

"Still. I didn't mean for that to happen." Chris shrugged.

"Would have happened eventually. Besides, I've said it before, I'll say it again; I'd rather live with you than her." He smiled.

"Well, I'm glad you get to live with me too." He walked over and wrapped her in a hug, and she hugged him back. When they let the other go, Neal spoke again. "Why don't we start unpacking your stuff."

"Right," she agreed, opening the box that she had been about to open before. This box held her laptop (a gift from her grandmother a year earlier), a small color printer, her small collection of CD's, DVD's, and her portable DVD player. She sat all of this on the desk.

Meanwhile, Neal had opened a trash bag full of clothes. "Where do you want what?" She looked at the contents.

"Um... coats, jackets, hoodies, ect. can all go in the closet, along with my dressy-er clothes." She cast a glance at the dresser, which had four drawers. "I can sort the rest into drawers later." He nodded and started digging around for what she told him to put in the closet. Chris opened the second box.

This one had her very many books. She wishes she had her book shelf... With a sigh, she moved it to the foot of the bed. Next, she unzipped the suitcase. It had all of her notebooks (which was a lot), textbooks and other school supplies, and her DS and games. She sat the DS on top of her laptop and shoved everything else inside the desk.

By this point, Neal had finished hanging coats and was opening the second bag. Inside were her blankets, pillows, and stuffed animals. With a smile, she picked up her favorite teddy bear. It was white (well, dirty white, but still...) and filled with little beads. It had been given to her by her father for her seventh birthday. Neal stared at it in wonder.

"You still have Teddy Bear," he said.

"Yup. It's the only bear I still use, really." With another little smile, she threw it onto the bed. Next came her body pillow. Then her normal pillow, followed by the old travel pillow with stupid little clowns on the cover. She had four blankets.

She spread the Spongebob Squarepants one out on the bed. At the foot of the bed, she sat her comforter, then both brown blankets. And she threw her Snuggie down near the teddy bear.

"Looks like we're done except for the rest of the clothes," she said.

"You don't have a lot of stuff," he commented.

"Tell me about it." There was a knock on the door. June and Gia walked in.

"Why don't you two join us for dinner?" June asked.

"Of course," Neal said. The group left the room and headed down to the dining room. Mozzie, Peter, and El were already around the table. Conversation between the adults flowed, and for the most part, Chris and Gia stayed silent. Finally, dinner was done.

"June," Chris said before they went up to Chris' new room.

"Yes, dear?"

"Do you have internet connection?"

"Yes, I do. Hang on, I'll write down the wireless password." The elderly woman walked into the sitting room and scribbled something down on a sheet of paper. With a smile, she handed it to Chris.

"Thank you," Chris said politely.

"Not a problem at all, dear. Good night."

"Good night," the girls replied together before heading for the stairs.


	9. School Days

A/N: Okay, since I'm a big idiot, I forgot that the party was on a Saturday, not Sunday, so there wouldn't have been school the next day... So, for argument's sake, the party was the next day instead of later that night, and she does have school the next day. XD Sorry if I confused anyone. Thanks for everyone who's left reviews, I love you all! On with the story! -A

Chapter 9: School Days

Once alone in Chris' new room, the girls got to work. First, they called the other girls to tell them what was going on. They agreed to handle the email, asking to be sent the list as soon as they had it sorted out. Next, Chris connected her laptop to the internet. Then she was able to go onto her email to get the original list. And it was long. With a sigh, she pulled out her burner phone and started the mass text.

_Attention all HH users. The teachers are getting too close for comfort, and we have reason to believe that the old text message system is no longer safe. We will continue with the HH program, but we are using different methods. You can chose one of two. 1.) email. An email will be sent to you with all the information inside. 2.) Facebook. A private message will be sent to you with the same information. If you wish to continue with HH, send an email to with your name, your email, and your choice. If you chose the Facebook method, please include your screen name and expect a friend request from either myself or Gia within a week. We apologise for any inconvenience. -Chris._

Then she began clicking through all the HH# contacts on the burner, and it was about ten minutes later before she was able to press send.

"Done with that," she said, tossing the phone on the bed.

"Now we wait," Gia said. Chris nodded, sitting down next to her friend. Waiting soon got boring, so Chris went and started sorting clothes into the dresser. When she finished, Gia was busy typing on the computer.

"What are you doing?"

"Checking to see who's paid." A few minutes later, she had a list of twenty names under the heading 'Black List.' She attached it to an email and sent it to Dani and Sam.

Chris looked at the little clock on the screen. It was almost ten thirty. "Suppose we should get ready for bed," she told Gia, who nodded in agreement. Gia went to the bathroom to change while Chris put the sheets on the pull out bed. When her friend returned, Chris grabbed her pajamas and did the same.

Not having an actual alarm clock, Chris plugged in her DS and set the alarm on that to go off at seven. Slowly, they driffted off to sleep.

WC

_Beep! Beep! Beep! _Chris opened her eyes and automaticly turned off the DS. With a soft groan, she sat up, confused. This wasn't her bedroom... then the memories from the previous night flooded back. Sighing, she stood and walked to the door, flipping on the lights. Gia was rubbing her eyes, trying to adjust to the light.

Still kind of groggy, Chris walked to the desk and turned on her laptop. After logging in, she connected to the internet and checked her email. Already seventy emails for HH. She sighed again. Gia looked over her shoulder.

"Damn," the taller girl said. "Have fun with that."

"Shut up," Chris said before logging off her email and getting up. "Just get dressed." Gia looked in her bag.

"Damn, I grabbed my little sister's shirt," Gia said, holding up a light blue shirt that wouldn't have been able to fit even Chris.

"I think I still have one of your shirts," Chris said.

"The red one that says Super Star?"

"Yup." Gia grinned and dug in top drawer, finally pulling out a red t-shirt. After grabbing a pair of shorts and some undergarments, Gia ran off to the bathroom. Time for Chris to deside what to wear... She pulled out a new shirt that she'd found. With a smile, she found a pair of capries in her bottom drawer. A moment later, Gia returned.

As soon as the door opened, Chris ran to the bathroom and quickly changed. When she came back, she saw Gia lacing up her tenis shoes. After shoveing socks on her own feet, she coppied. Gia looked at Chris.

"Nice shirt," the other girl commented with a slightly sarcastic grin.

"Shut up, it's cute." She looked down a little self-consiously and looked at the words. 'Real men may wear pink, but real women wear camo.' Rolling her eyes, Chris put her laptop in her bag and they walked out the door.

The door to Neal's appartment was open when they got there. Peter and Neal were sitting on the patio, eating. Smiling, they walked out. Chris grabbed a piece of bacon off Neal's plate before sitting down.

"You could ask, you know."

"Right, you're one to talk. Tell me, did you ask before you took people's money, or art, or whatever?" A faint blush crept across Neal's face. "Thought not."

"You're such a great role model," Peter commented with a smirk. Neal rolled her eyes.

"Dad," Chris said, recalling his attention. "You have to, like, go into the school and have the contact information changed."

"Okay, where's your school?" She told him and he bit his lip. Peter, however, was trying to stifle a laugh.

"Let me guess," Gia said, "your leash ain't long enough?" This made Neal blush slightly again.

"I'll drive you girls to school," Peter said, "that way all three of you can get there."

"Thanks, Peter," Neal and Chris said together. They quickly finished breakfast and were out the door.

WC

"I didn't know your father was alive," the secretary, Mrs. Klap at the school commented as Neal filled out the forms.

"I never said he wasn't. His... job kept him away for a while," she said with a shrug.

"Really? What job would keep him away for so long?"

"That's irrelevant," Chris, said. Mrs. Klap bit her lip, looking like she wanted to press the matter, but said nothing. A moment later, Neal was done and passed the clipboard over to Mrs. Klap. She read it over and smiled.

"Looks good. Have a nice day." They walked out of the office and a moment later, the warning bell rung.

"I gotta go, or I'll be late... again." Neal and Peter rolled their eyes.

"Okay," Neal said. "Have a good day, and stay out of trouble."

"I could probably say the same thing to you," Chris said, before waving and running off. Peter was chuckling and Neal gave him a slightly dark look.

"Well," the older man said, "she wasn't wrong, was she?"

WC

It was a very boring day at the office. They had made no progress in the case, and that didn't seem to be changing. They spent the better part of the day staring at case files that they all had memorized, hoping to find something new. No dice.

Neal and Peter were about to call it quits and leave for the day, when Neal's cell phone rang. Confused, he pulled it out, not recognizing the number.

"Hello?" he said into the reciever.

"_Mr. Caffrey?_" an irritated-sounding man's voice replied.

"Yes..."

"_I'm Mr. Shelton, the principal of Christeen's school_," the man said. This worried Neal.

"What happened? Is Chris alright?" Peter became alarmed at these words.

"_Yes, she's fine. But she's in a lot of trouble. She was caught forging a signature on a premission slip. You need to come down here_." Clencing his teeth, Neal replied.

"Of course. I will see you soon." Without waiting for a responce, Neal hung up.

"What happened?" Peter asked.

"Chris got in trouble for forging a signature."


	10. Charmer

Chapter 10: Charmer

_"Hey, Dani," Chris said, walking with Gia to their sixth period study hall. The black-haired girl spun around to see Chris and Gia walking over._

_"Oh, hey guys."_

_"Where's Sam?" Gia asked._

_"Vending machine." Chris nodded. They would pass that on the way to the auditeria. The three girls walked down the hall and turned, bringing four vending machines into sight. In front of one was a short, blonde girl, putting quarters in. While she tried to decide what to get, Chris snuck over and pressed two buttons, C3._

_"What the hell!" Sam exclaimed as the package of chocolate fudge Grandma's Cookies started to fall. "Chris!" Smiling boldly, the brunette in question ducked down and grabbed the cookies, ripping open the bag and biting into one. Sam was giving her the evil eye, so, after rolling her eyes, Chris dug in her pocket and handed over two more quarters._

_"Bitch," Chris muttered jokingly._

_"Takes one to know one," Sam countered._

_"Touche." Laughing, the girls made for the doors, but were stopped by a tall boy. Chris rolled her eyes again. "What do you want, Ethan?" He bit his lip._

_"I need a paper signed," he whispered. How did she know? Oh, right, Ethan had a grudge against her ever since eight grade, when she put a paper she faked a signature on in his desk and he got caught with it. He's been trying to get her in trouble since._

_"Right. Have fun with that." She went to walk away, but he grabbed her arm._

_"Come on. Please?"_

_"I don't do that kind of thing. It's against the rules." He scoffed._

_"Just one itty-bitty signature." She sighed._

_"Fine, give it to me." He smiled and handed her an envelope with a report card in it. She walked to the nearest locker and pulled out a pen. "What's your mom's name?"_

_"Yovonne Idella," he told her. Smiling mischiviously to herself, she scribbled a signature on the paper, stuffed it back in the envelope, and sealed it. Looking annoyed, she handed it back._

_"Twenty bucks," she said, holding out a hand. He sighed and pressed the twenty into her hand before walking away._

_"Did you really just do that?" Dani whispered to her, appalled._

_"Sort of," Chris said with an evil grin._

WC

Now all four girls sat in the principle's office, calm as anything. He had a smug grin on his face as he stared at them, the unopened envelope in his hand. Chris stared blankly back.

A while later, a slightly annoyed Neal, and a curious Peter walked in. "Ah," Mr. Shelton said as they entered. "Mr. Caffrey, I'm sorry I had to call you, but..."

"It's fine," Neal said. He noticed the unopened envelope. "Is that it?"

"Yes."

"You haven't looked at it yet."

"I don't need to, Ethan Idella turned it in," Mr. Shelton explained, motioning to the boy standing smugly in the corner

"I see... so you have no proof if it really was her, just his word."

"I... Well... No, I suppose not..." Peter took this opertunity.

"Neal is sort of an expert when it comes to forgeries. He can quickly verify if it's fake or not."

"Is this true?" Neal nodded once.

"Yes. I'll need to see a real paper signed by Mrs. Idella, and then her name signed by both Ethan and Chris."

"That can be arranged." A moment later, he was standing at Mr. Shelton's desk with three papers signed _Yovonne Idella,_and the still unopened envelope. Peter knew that Neal would say it was signed by Ethan, it's just the kind of thing he would do. Casting a glance at Chris, Neal opened it and pulled it out. He scanned it for a second before he rolled his eyes and shot a small smile at Chris, both went unnoticed by everyone but her and Peter.

"Is it fake?" Mr. Shelton asked.

"Most definately," Neal told him.

"And did Christeen sign it?" Peter held his breath.

"Yes," Neal said, making Peter blance. He couldn't believe his ears. Chris just grinned. "And it's incredible acurate."

"You're in a heap of trouble," Shelton said to Chris.

"Not exactly," Neal said. This stopped Shelton in his tracks.

"What do you mean, 'not exactly?'" Neal smiled.

"Take a look," he told them, moving aside. Everyone but Chris gathered around. Peter chuckled under his breath at what he saw. _Youranne Idiota._

"Explaine this!" Shelton said, outraged.

"He kept bugging me, so I said I'd sign it. I was gonna write 'Eef Off' but he told me his mom's name, and I couldn't resist. I figured he'd actually _look _at it." The final bell rung, cutting off whatever Shelton was going to say.

"I want my money back!" Ethan shouted.

"What money?" she asked innocently. It occured to Peter that an innocent Chris was a lot like an innocent Neal. It just didn't happen.

"The twenty you charge people to forge signatures," he replied through gritted teeth.

"I don't forge signatures! And I never charged you for anything." The other girls nodded in agreement.

"Let's go," Neal said, grabbing her arm and pulling her from the office.

"I gotta go to my locker," she protested. He sighed but let her lead the way. She dialed it quickly, swung it open, and began shifting through her books. She took two out, and replaced them with three that were in her bag. "'Kay, let's go." They walked out to the car.

They only drove for a few minutes before Neal spoke. "That was pretty careless,"

"I didn't do anything wrong. He was bugging me. I figured he would look at it before he did something like that."

"You did steal twenty dollars," Peter pointed out.

"Allegedly." Neal smiled. Peter rolled his eyes.

"Am I to suppose that you really _do _forge signatures for money?" Neal asked.

"That's what they've been trying to prove since I was in eight grade. That and some other things." She was almost as slippery as her father.

"Have you ever been caught?" Peter couldn't help but ask.

"Once. I got a detention. That was in seventh grade."

"You said eighth before."

"Exactly," she said with a smile. "Took me off the suspect list for a while. But now, whenever there's a... discrepancy in signatures, me and my friends are pretty much the usual suspects."

"_Just_ what the world needs," Peter muttered, "_another_ criminal Caffrey."


	11. The Forgery

A/N: Okay, I don't know a lot of paintings and I'm to lazy to Google any, so I'm making them up along with the artist. And same with the museam. Sorry! Hope you like it though. I own nothing but my OC's. -A

Chapter 11: The Forgery

They made it to June's not long after. Peter came in with them, files tucked under his arm. After throwing her bag in her room, she followed them up. By the time she got there, they already had the files open and spead out on the table.

"I still don't see why they would take the paintings they did. They weren't worth much, and there's not much appeal for them on the black market," Neal said. Curious, Chris walked over and sat down, looking at the files.

"What paintings did they steal?" she asked. Neal pushed over a file full of pictures of paintings. She looked them over, recognizing a few. He was right, not very valuble.

"They were so close to the most valuble paintings in the museam, but didn't go for them," Peter said. "Why?"

"Didn't want to risk it?" Neal asked.

"What's the most valuble painting in the museam?" Chris asked. Neal looked through the pictures in front of him until he found the right one. She looked at it. "The Angel's Kiss?"

"You know it?" Peter asked. She gave him a look that said 'do you really have to ask?' She went back to studying it.

"We went on a school trip to the Bremming's Gallery in eighth grade. This was my favorite." Then something caught her eye. "Wait a sec..."

"What?" Neal and Peter asked together.

"Is the museam still open to the public?" she asked.

"They only closed the section where the paintings were stolen from. Why?"

"Because something's not right about this."

"How do you know that?" Neal asked. "It's been two years since you saw the painting."

"I have an eidetic memory," she said. Peter was obviously confused. "I remember everything. And I need to see this painting." Nodding, Peter stood. Shrugging, Neal stood too, followed by Chris.

WC

Chris was studying the painting intently. Her eyes scanned every inch, taking in every detail. Her face was inches from the canvas at one point.

"Well?" Peter asked. She turned and looked him in the eye.

"I'm almost positive it's a fogery."

"What makes you say that?"

"First, Michal George had a more flowing brushstroke, this is choppy and sloppy. Second, the Angel is supposed to have a gold halo, this one has a silver halo. Third, in the bottom left corner, where Michal George always signed his work, are the inintals GT. And, last, you can still smell the paint because it isn't fully dry yet." With a look at each other, Peter and Neal stepped over to the painting and inhaled. She was right, they could smell the paint.

"The other paintings were a smoke screen," Neal said. "They didn't want anyone to find out about this, so they stole the others and replaced it with a forgery."

"A forgery that would have gone unnotcied without Chris," Peter added. The agent sighed. "Let's go tell the curator (A/N: My mom gave me that spelling, if it's wrong, sorry. -A)."

WC

"You're _sure _it's a forgery?" Mr. Bremming asked.

"We'll need to run some tests to be absolutly positive, but it's not looking good."

"And the other museams?"

"We have yet to look into that, but if it's the same person, there's a good chance their most valuble painting has been replaced with a forgery."

"Will you be able to get the painting back?"

"We will do everything we can," Peter assured him. This seemed to put him at ease.

"If you don't mind my asking, how did you discover that it was a forgery, Agent Burke?" Peter shot a glance at Neal and Chris.

"We had some outside help from someone who knew the painting very well."

WC

_"Hello?" _

"Hey, Geo, it's Chris."

_"Hey kid!" _an excited voice boomed from the speaker. _"How's it going?"_

"We need to talk. In person," she said, ignoring his question.

_"Why?" _

"Because, either you're the worlds biggest moron, or someone has a grudge against you and wants your ass thrown in prison." This sobered him up really quick.

_"When and where?"_


	12. Meetings

Chapter 12: Meetings

Chris drummed her fingers on the diner table in impatiance. She was paranoid as crap, with good reason. If Geo was involved, and she told him that the feds were looking for him (wether they knew it or not), she could get in so much trouble for aiding and abetting (A/N: I'm sure that's not the right spelling, but I could care less. -A) if they found out. But he was a friend, and, damn it, she couldn't sit around and let him go down for a crime he may or may not have commited.

A voice behind her made her jump. "Can I get you anything to drink, dear?" a waitress asked.

"Ah!" she exclaimed. "Oh, right. Um... a Mtn. Dew, please." The waitress smiled and walked away. A few minutes passed before her drink was sat in front of her.

"Anything to eat?"

"No, not right now, I'm waiting for a friend."

"Okay, let me know if you change your mind, dear." The waitress walked away again. Chris glanced at her watch. He was ten minutes late.

Chris was half way through her pop when a tall, black man sat down. "Hey, kid," he said. "Sorry I'm late. Traffic was horrible."

"It's fine," she said, pulling the Angel's Kiss photo out of her bag and sat it in front of him. He looked at it.

"This is superb... clearly fake, but absolutly incredible. Who did this?" She sighed in relief.

"So, you didn't?" He looked her in the eye.

"I've never been good at Michal George's work, or anything cubistic or abstract. You know that... why did you think I did this?" But Chris glanced over and saw the waitress coming back, so she pulled the photo off the table and onto the bench next to her.

"You ready to order?" the waitress asked.

"Sure," Chris said. "I'll have a salad with ranch dressing."

"Um... A sandwhich of the day with a side of fries," Geo said. "And a Mnt. Dew." She smiled as she wrote, grabbed my cup, and walked off. "Now," Geo said, lowering his voice, "why did you think I did this?"

"Look at the bottom left corner," she said, handing the picture back. He looked closely at it, squinting to see the little writing.

"GT," he whispered. "Geo Thomas. Damn it!" His voice was louder than it should have been and a few people turned to give him a the evil eye.

"Shush!" Chris exclaimed softly.

"Right, sorry."

"Do you know anyone who might want to frame you?"

"Yeah, Charlie Turnway." Chris shook her head slowly, giving him a look that said she had no clue who that was. "He's a has a ring or forgers, the best in the business... well, except your dad. Neal turned them down way before his first sentence." He was about to keep going, but noticed the waitress and put the photo on the seat next to him. She sat the food and drinks down before walking away. "A few months ago, he came up to me and offered me a job. I told him I wasn't intersted, that I was getting out of the game, but he didn't seem like he would take no for an answer. He said 'You'll wish you hadn't turned me down soon enough.'" They ate in silence for a moment.

"Do you think the feds'll connect me to the forgery?" he asked in a small voice. Chris bit her lip, hesitating before answering.

"I don't know. Peter Burke and Dad are working the case. If anyone can catch a con, it's them."

"Will you let me know if they're getting close?"

"Of course." He smiled and they finished eating.

"Chris, thank you. I know how much trouble you could get in if I become a suspect and they find out about this."

"Don't worry. I'll be fine." He smiled again.

"I know it's not much, and I still owe you big time, but I'll pay."

"Thanks," she said before grabbing the picture, stuffing it in his bag, and walking out.

WC

"I saw a mocking bird in the park yesterday," a cryptic voice said. Neal rolled his eyes.

"I'm not doing the stupid bird thing, Moz. Get out here." With a sigh, the short, bald man walked out, sitting next to the young man on the bench.

"What did you want to talk about. You were unusually cryptic on the phone."

"Yeah, well, I was with Peter and couldn't risk him finding out what I was talking about."

"Which is..."

"You know the case we were working on?"

"The museam heists?"

"Yeah. The thefts were just smoke screens for the real score. The theif made forgeries of the most valuble paintings and replaced the real one with the forgery."

"Ah, that's smart."

"Yeah, but the forger was either careless, or trying to get caught. There were quite a few mistakes, big mistakes, including initals in the corner."

"So you need me because..."

"I need to talk to Geo, but I can't get ahold of him."

"I'll ask around, see if I can get in touch," Mozzie assured Neal.

"Thanks, Moz," the younger man said before walking away.


	13. Suspicion

A/N: This chapter has the same deal as 'The Forger' with (save for the Met) made up museams, artists, and paintings. Thanks for the reviews and thanks for reading! -A

Chapter 13: Suspicion

Neal had gone to talk to Mozzie about something, leaving Peter at the office. The con man had been very cryptic while talking to Mozzie, which was suspicious to the agent, but he let it go. Neal was probably just working on hunch and wanted something more concrete before telling anyone.

"Peter," Jones said, standing in the doorway. "I got the pictures you asked for." Jones came in and sat a file on Peter's desk.

"Thanks, Jones." The younger agent nodded before walking out again. Peter picked up the file and began to look through the photographs. He'd asked Jones for photos of all the most valuble paintings in all the museams that had been hit.

From the Met, there was a painting from an artist Peter only vaguely knew, Jacob Morent. He scanned the picture for a signature on the painting, Ice Castle. In the same corner as before were two letters, but they weren't GT, they were MD. This confused Peter.

Did this mean it was a different forger? With the same M.O? Or was it someone messing with them? Shakeing his head, he looked at the next photo. Yet again, the bottom left corner had two letter, neither of which were on the others. AB. Peter was very confused at this point. He looked quickly through the next four, writing down the letters. When he had only one left, his list was as follows: GT, MD, AB, SF, RL, KP, and TA. Sighing, he looked at the last photo. When he read the letter, his breath caught in his throat. He rubbed his eyes, but they stayed the same.

But there was no way! It was impossible. It was someone messing with them, completely random letters. There was no way it was ture... but it wasn't impossible, Peter realized. In fact it was very possible. It was as possible as the two letters on the bottom of the painting. NC.

Just then, a voice startled Peter from his thoughts, making the agent jump. "Hey, Peter. Find anything?"

"Damn it, Neal! Ever heard of knocking?" Neal was taken aback.

"_Someone's _grouchy today," Neal said. Peter took a breath and shook his head.

"Sorry, you scared me." With a charming smile, Neal sat down across from Peter.

"So, _did,_you find anything?"

"Someone's messing with us," Peter told him. "Every painting has a different set of initals."

"Really?" Peter nodded. Neal went to reach for the list in front of the agent, but Peter pulled them out of his reach. "What?"

"I... It's just..." But Peter didn't know what to tell him. Realization lit Neal's eyes.

"NC's on the list, isn't it?" Biting his lip, Peter nodded. "You really think I have something to do with this?" Peter sighed.

"No, I don't. Sorry, suspision is sort of second nature."

"It's fine."

"So, what did Mozzie say?"

"Nothing. I told him to ask around New York's underground and see what came up." Neal failed to specify what he asked Mozzie to look for, but it wasn't a complete lie. And Peter didn't see throught the part that was keeping something from him. With any luck, Neal was wrong anyway.

"Let me know if that happens," Peter said. Neal nodded.

WC

Later that night, Neal was in his apartment, talking to Chris while she worked on her homework. By the way she was talking to him, it was evident that she was keeping something, but he didn't press. She looked at her hand, where she had for some unknown reason written her assignments and realized that she still had to print out an essay for English class. She grabbed her laptop from her bag and ran out. But a paper had spilled out and she didn't notice it. Rolling his eyes, he went to pick it up, but did a double-take when he saw what it was. The picture of the forged Angel's Kiss.

He wondered why she had this. Looking at the door to make sure no one was coming, he opened the bag wide and shifted through the contents. He hated to pry, but curiosity overwhelmed him. He found nothing until he reached the bottom of the bag. Her burner phone...

With another glance at the door, he pulled it out and stared at it. He shouldn't do it... that would be an invasion of privacy... But if she was doing something that could get her in trouble, he had to know, right? Right. Sighing, he pressed the down button, taking him to the call log. The last call made from this phone was to a contact under GT.

_That could be to Gia, _he thought. He scrolled through the contact list. Right above GT was Gia. There went _that _theory. Biting his lip, he hesitantly selected the GT, bringing him to the phone number. He quickly commited it to memory before clearing the screen and throwing the phone back in the bag, and, after a moment's debating, the phone was followed by photo. He sat back down, and not a moment too soon, because that's when Chris came in with her computer and two sheets of paper.

They continued to talk, Neal acting as if he had no clue what was in her bag. He wouldn't admit it, but he felt a little guilty for invading her privacy like that, but he had to protect her if she was getting in over her head. She wouldn't end up like him if he had anything to do with it. But for now, he would keep an eye on her, his suspicion hiding just under the surface.


	14. Phone Calls

A/N: Hey. Sorry I've taken so long to post, I just got home. My mom and I went to town to see Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows part 2 and it was AMAZING! Sorry, getting off topic. So, yeah, chapter 14. This is where things start heating up. Thanks for all the reviews, they mean a lot. So, without further ado (or maybe adu, how should I know?) here is Chapter 14! (Oh, I have a camo apearance in this chapter, but with a slightly different name... Look for me!) -A

Chapter 14: Phone Calls

Neal had another day off the next day. He was still debating calling GT, and his best chance would be while Chris was at school. He argued with himself till about noon, when his burning curiosity won over. He pulled out his cell phone and dialed the number. It rang four times before someone answered.

_"Hello?" _a man's voice said.

"Geo Thomas?" Neal asked.

_"Yeah... Who's this?"_

"You can't figure that out?"

_"Neal Caffrey,"_ Geo said. _"How'd you get this number, man?"_

"You talked to Chris. Why?" Neal asked, ignoring the question.

_"Why do you want to know?" _

"Why did you talk to Chris?" Neal demanded, his voice a low growl.

_"That's between me and her. Feel free to ask. I'm sure she'll tell you." _Geo's voice was thick with sarcasm.

"Damn it, Geo! If you're up to something, I will _not _let you drag Chris down with you," Neal promised before ending the call. Frustrated, Neal threw the phone on the table and went to pour himself a glass of wine. This would not end well.

WC

Peter came over to June's at around two. Neal put on a flawless facade and kept Peter from being suspicious. They tried endlessly to find a motive behind the initals, but none came to mind. None that seemed likely, anyway.

At three-thirty, Chris walked in, throwing her bag on the couch before sitting next to Neal. He had to work extra hard not to slip up. He didn't want Peter to know... yet.

It was nearly four before anything happened. Chris' phone rang, startling everyone at the table. She pulled it out of her pocket and walked over to the couch.

"Hello?" she called in to the reciever.

_"Chris, is anyone with you?"_a man asked franticly.

"Just Dad and Peter."

_"Pretend you're talking to Gia,"_Geo told her.

"Okay," she agreed, slight confusion coloring her tone. She was painfully aware of Neal and Peter watching her. "What's going on, G?"

_"Your dad called me,"_he said calmly. Her mouth flew open in shock.

"He did _what?"_This conversation would be harder than she thought...

_"Yeah. And he knows we talked."_

"How?" She was trying _not _to start shouting at her father, or even start glaring at him, which was easier said than done.

_"I don't know,"_ Geo admitted. _"He had the number I gave you. The one only you, Gia, and a few other friends have." _

"He did _not..." _but her sentance trailed off, keeping her unwanted audience in mind. Geo didn't realize that.

_"Yes, he did." _

"What did you tell him?" she demanded.

_"Nothing, I swear. But I think he knows I'm involved." _

"What happened?" It wasn't exactly right for the conversation, but he would understand, and with any luck Peter and Neal _wouldn't. _

_"Mozzie's been asking around the underground community for me. Word is, Neal's looking for me, and, unless I'm much mistaken, it's for similar reasons you called me."_

"That sucks, Gia," she said, which conveyed to him 'shit!'

_"Just thought I'd let you know... Oh! There's been another response." _

"Really? What'd he say?" Again, a smoke screen.

_"She said 'Yes, I got the offer. No, I didn't take it.'"_

"Okay. Sorry, Gia. Talk to you later."

_"Bye." _The line went dead.

"What was that about?" Peter asked as she sat back down at the table.

"Oh, Gia just found out that her boyfriend was cheating on her," Chris lied smoothly and convincingly, raising no alarms. "I told her that he was going to hurt her. I even told him that if he _did, _he would have to deal with me." Peter and Neal laughed at this. Chris was trying hard not to glare at Neal, or yell, or call him out. It was difficult.

An hour later, Peter left, bidding them a good night. He closed the door behind him, and as soon as his foot steps faded from the stairs, she exploded.

"I cannot believe you!" He was taken aback.

"What?"

"That phone call, yeah, it wasn't from Gia."

"Then who was it?" She just stared at him until he got it. "Geo." She gave a sarcastic smil and nodded.

"I can't _believe _you looked through my bag, then looked at my contacts!"

"Geo isn't looking very good in this case, and I _won't _let him get you involved!"

"He's not involved!" she shouted. Neal scoffed.

"What makes you say that? His word?"

"Do you know a man named Charlie Turnway?" she asked. This froze him in his tracks.

"Yeah, he runs a forgery ring. Even asked me if I wanted a job."

"And what did he say when you turned him down?"

"That I'd regret not joining him... and Geo's a talented forger." Chris nodded slowly. "That means the initals could be him trying to frame us."

"That's what we thought, so Geo got ahold of some friends. We came up with six possible forgers, looked into them, and got word out to them."

"Who?" Neal asked, anger evaporated. She walked over to her bag and pulled out a blue folder, sitting it at the table. As she spoke, she flipped through photos.

"First is MD. Mark Demont is a forger who is particularly good with cubistic paintings. When we sent the message out to him to ask if he ever had a run in with Turnway, he said he declined a job offer.

"SF is Sam Friday. He mostly does abstract, but is fair in other types of paintings. Turnway offered him a job, but Friday had just gotten out of prison a few months prior and was getting out of the game.

"RL was a bit tough to track down, but we found her. Remey Lowell was a fence, but after a near-miss from a client with a gun, she started using her painting abilities to forge. Turned down Turnway last year.

"Katie Prince forged portraits,b ut was double-crossed by a 'friend' and was arrested. Same deal as Friday.

"Taylor Antell is TA. He was an amazing landscape artist, but his own work never took off, so he started forging. After getting one of Turnway's men arrested, unknowingly, he was offered the spot he now needed filled, but refused."

"What about AB?" Neal asked.

"She was hard to find, and Geo only just told me what she said when he called. Her name is Amanda Baughman. Her dad worked for Turnway and taught her how to paint slash forge. Last month, on her eighteenth birthday actually, he said that he wanted her to work with him. Geo just told me that she turned him down, like all the rest."

"This whole thing for revenge that may not even work," Neal said, shaking his head. Chris nodded slowly. "When did you plan to tell me this?"

"The second we were alone after I learned Amanda's answer. Which I did."

"We gotta tell Peter," Neal said, pulling his phone from his pocket. He expected her to protest, but she said nothing.

_"Neal?"_Peter asked, confused.

"Where are you?" the young man asked.

_"Home. Why?"_

"You might want to round up the Harvard crew and meet us at the office."


	15. Information

A/N: Hello! This one's gonna be a bit short, but I wrote it at two in the morning, so my brain didn't have the attention span to write anything longer. And this one's kinda filler... Sorry. I'll try to put up an important... er chapter later today or tomorrow! Tell me what'cha think! -A

Chapter 15: Information

"Do I _have _to go?" Chris asked in a whiney tone. Neal rolled his eyes.

"You're the one who figured it out," Neal reminded her.

"And you think they'll listen to a kid?" she asked, arching an eyebrow, earning a shrug from the con man. "Can't you just lie and say _you _figured it out?" He flashed and evil grin.

"But I didn't. I have to give credit where credit is due." Chris rolled her eyes.

"Is this payback for keeping it secret from you?" He smiled again, saying 'yes.' She sighed. "The _one _time you chose not to take credit for someone else's work," she muttered, half to herself, as she grabbed her bag and walked out the door. Chuckling under his breath, Neal grabbed his hat and followed her out, shutting the door behind him.

WC

"Neal, you had better have a damn good reason for dragging us in here," Diana threatened.

"Don't I always?" Then she noticed Chris.

"Why'd you bring her?" the agent asked, dropping her voice to a near-whisper.

"She's my 'damn good reason,'" he told her before grabbing Chris' arm and walking up to Peter's office. The older man looked about as happy as Diana had been.

"So, are you going to tell me why you had me call everyone in?... and why you brought Chris?" Neal turned to his daugther.

"Tell him." With a final glare at her father, Chris put the file down in front of Peter. She was vaguely aware of Diana and Jones walking in, interested in what she had to say. Peter flipped through the photos as Chris told him what she had told Neal not long before.

"You're serious?" Peter asked when she was finished.

"Absolutely."

"And you didn't think I would have liked to know about this?"

"I just told you, didn't I?" Peter rolled his eyes.

"Well, I'll admit, I'm impressed. Diana, run background checks on everyone of these forgers. Jones, I want everything you can find on Charlie Turnway." They nodded and walked out, prepared to do their assigned task. "We'll need to talk to these people..." He turned to Chris. "Can you get them to come in?" Chris laughed.

"Peter, these are forgers, criminals. There's a _reason _they're part of New York's underground. They're not just going to waltz into the FBI headquarters! Even if I have Dad with me, they won't want anything to do with the feds."

"Can you get them in here or not?" Peter asked through gritted teeth. Neal looked like he wanted to say something, but Chris spoke before he could.

"I could probably convince Geo pretty easy, but the other's will be challenging..."

"Could you try?" Chris sighed.

"Yeah, I can try."

"How long do you think it'll take?" She glanced at her watch and bit her lip for a moment before answering.

"I don't know. Give me a few hours, I'll see what I can do." Throughout this whole conversation, Neal hadn't said a word. But he didn't like the thought of him and Chris trying to get potentally violent crminals to come into the FBI without help... Finally, he stepped forward.

"I can get Moz to help, he's got a lot of... contacts that might help you find them. Besides, there are quite a few people that owe him favors." Peter rolled his eyes again, and Chris laughed. Neal pulled his phone out and walked out of the office, putting it to his ear.

"And _I'll _talk to Geo, I think he knows one or two of these forgers." She grabbed her phone and followed Neal's lead. Once they were both done with their calls, they had arranged to send Mozzie and Geo texts with the time and place of the meet.

"Where are we going to meet them?" Neal asked in a whisper.

"Um... is there a park nearby?" Neal nodded and told her where it was. She nodded and began typing the message.

_Meet me the park .2 miles east of the Federal Plaza n 30 mins. I'll b w/ Dad & Moz. Chris _

It was a few minutes before she got an answer.

_I'll b there. Geo_


	16. Reluctance

A/N: Hey! Okay, I have the most epic and evil ending planned so I hope to get to it soon! So I hope I'll be posting more often. I own nothing but OC's. Hope you like it. (P.S. I have an apearance in this chapter! But she's a bit loopy...) -A

Chapter 16: Reluctance

Half an hour later, Neal and Chris were sitting on a park bench, waiting for Mozzie and Geo. There was a voice from behind.

"Hey, Chris, you wanted to talk?" She spun around to see Geo, smiling boldly. She gave him a small smile in return.

"Yup, we're just waiting for Moz." He nodded and sat down.

"Geo," Neal said, "I'm sorry about what I said on the phone... I..."

"It's cool, man," Geo said, raising a hand in a dismissive fasion. Neal gave him a slightly sheepish grin. _Men, _she thought, rolling her eyes. Nearly ten minutes passed before Mozzie got there.

"So what's so important that you needed to talk urgantly?" Mozzie asked, sitting to Neal's left.

"The forgeries I was telling you about," Neal whispered, "is an attempt to get a bunch of forgers framed by Charlie Turnway."

"Charlie Turnway, as in the man who runs a giant forgery ring, Charlie Turnway?" Mozzie asked, shocked.

"Yes. He's trying to get forgers who turned him down arrested. Me and Geo are on that list."

"So what are you trying to do?" Geo asked, looking around Chris.

"We need to talk to the other forgers to see if they can help us find him," Chris explained.

"And you don't think they'll want to come into the FBI headquarters," Geo concluded.

"Of course they won't!" Mozzie exclaimed.

"We might be able to convince them, but we have to _find _them first," Neal said.

"I know Sam Friday and Taylor Antell," Geo said. "I could probably convince them if they think that someone's going to make sure they get arrested."

"I suppose I can help," Mozzie said. Smiling, Neal handed him the list of forgers. "Let's see, I know Mark... and I have a friend who owes me a favor who might know Remey Lowell and Katie Prince..."

"What about Amanda Baugman?" Chris asked. Mozzie gave her a dark look.

"I know of her, and she'll be the hardest to convince, from what I've heard, she's not much of a people person."

"Do you know anyone who can help us find her?" Mozzie nodded.

"Okay," Neal said. "Geo, talk to Firday and Antell, see if they'll meet us here in... two hours should be enough time. Moz, talk to Demont and find the other two. Who's the friend who's the friend who might know Baughman?" Mozzie hesitated before answering.

"Alex," he told Neal reluctantly. Neal groaned.

"Of course. And I think I know just where I'll find her."

WC

They were in front of a nice apartment complex not far from the park they had been in. "How do you'll know she'll be here?" Chris asked. Neal smiled.

"Because I saw her one day, she didn't see me, and I couldn't help myself."

"You followed her home?" Chris asked, amused.

"Don't you dare tell her that!" She raised her hands, palms forward.

"Promise." Neal rolled his eyes, but started across the road anyway. She followed him and they were soon greeted by an unfriendly-looking lady at the front desk of the apartment complex.

"Hello," Neal said with a charming smile. "I was looking for my friend, and I was told she lives here, her name is Alex Hunter." The lady glared at him but turned to her computer. After typing for a second, she turned back.

"Ms. Hunter lives on the second floor, b5." He smiled briliantly again.

"Thank you very much, ma'am." With that, they walked up the stairs to the second floor. Five was quickly located. Neal rapped on the door three or four times, but moved out of the peep-hole's line of sight. A few moment's later, the door opened.

"Yes?" Alex said, not recognizing Chris. Neal stepped behind Chris, smiling again.

"Hey, Alex."

"What do you want, Caffrey? And who's the kid?" Chris rolled her eyes.

"Can we come in? I promise, I'll explain everything." Alex sighed, but moved aside the let them in. They walked in and were led to a small sitting room. Alex gestured for them to sit on a small couch.

"So who's the kid?" she repeated as she sat in a small armchair.

"My daugther, Chris." Alex looked like Neal hit her.

"You have a child?"

"Clearly."

"Is she-"

"No, she's not Kate's." Alex nodded.

"I'm going to guess you didn't bring her to meet me," Alex said.

"You guessed right," Chris said.

"We're looking for someone you might know," Neal said.

"And, who might I know?" she asked.

"Amanda Baughman." Alex bit her lip.

"I'll take that as a 'yes,'" Chris said.

"Yes, I know her."

"Where is she?" Neal asked.

"Why do you want to know?"

"Someone's trying to frame her," Neal told her. Alex bit her lip again before standing and grabbing a pen and piece of paper from the coffee table. She wrote something down quickly and handed it to Neal.

"She doesn't like people much, and doesn't trust men. That's why I was almost always her fence. If you want to talk to her, use the girl," Alex suggested, motioning to Chris.

"Is she violent?"

"No, she's not violent, but she's really skitish. Tread with care."

"Thank you, Alex," Neal said before the two Caffrey's stood and walked out.

WC

_Knock! Knock! Knock! _Chris waited for a minute before the door opened a little, stopped from opening more by the security chain. A pair of green eyes peeked out. "Yes?" the woman asked in a timid voice. Chris smiled calmingly.

"Hello, Amanda?" The woman nodded a little. "My name is Chris. I really need to talk to you, may I come in?" The women studied Chris carefully.

"I don't know you," Amanda said.

"I know, I-" but the woman cut her off.

"How did you know where to find me?" Amand demanded.

"I'm a friend of Alex's," Chris told her, stretching the truth.

"Alex Hunter?"

"Yes, may I please come in?"

"Are you alone?" Chris hesitated for a second before answering.

"I have a friend outside the building, but I promise, no one else will come in." After a moment's debate, the door closed, but was almost immediately reopened, allowing Chris to enter.

It was kind of dark in the apartment. Chris was led into a sitting room similar to Alex's. She took a seat on the couch.

"Why did you come?" Amanda asked.

"Do you know a man named Charlie Turnway?" Amanda stiffened at the name.

"That man murdered my father! Why do you want to know about him?" Chris was shocked by this sudden outburst, but her face didn't betray that to Amanda.

"We think he may be trying to frame you and get you arrested."

"We? Who's 'we,' exactly?" Chris was hoping this wouldn't come up, but she wasn't going to lie.

"The FBI," she said gently.

"You're a fed?"

"No! My father works with the feds, but he's a con man. He only works there so he doesn't have to stay in prison. A friend of mine is also being framed and I don't want anyone going to prison for a crime they didn't commit."

"I won't to in! I won't let them arrest me!"

"And they won't. They know you're being framed. You're not in trouble."

"Don't let them arrest me, please!" Amanda plead. Her eyes were full of fear.

"I promise, they won't arrest you. They want to arrest Charlie Turnway."

"Good. He murdered my father."

"I know. And if anyone can catch him, it's them." She nodded and stood. "Let's go," Chris said. After short hesitation, Amanda agreed. This may be a lot bigger than they originally thought.


	17. Invitation

A/N: Okay, just to keep the record straight, the 'me-based' character is nothing like me. Just the name, kay? Hope you're liking Federal Custody! I still don't own anything WC, but a girl can dream, right? XD Let me know what'cha think! -A

Chapter 17: Invitation

Amanda refused to walk with Neal. Alex hadn't been kidding about the forger's distrust of men... So, instead, Chris would take her straight to the FBI while Neal would meet the others in the park.

"You know," Chris said while they were walking, "most of the agents are men."

"I figured," she sighed, "but it's sort of a force of habit. Will... will you stay with me?" Her voice was small and timid so Chris smiled reassuringly.

"Of course," Chris promised. "Why are you so..."

"Distrusting of men?" Amanda supplied. Biting her lip, Chris nodded. "When I was twelve, my parents divorced. A year later, my mom remarried. The dick was always drunk and like to hit her... it's kinda hard to trust something after growing up watching that." She shrugged like it was nothing, but Chris could see the pain in her eyes.

"But the feds, they're not like that," Chris told her. "They're the 'good guys.'" She made air quotes around the last two words. This made Amanda smile.

"You're right. I'll remember that."

WC

They made it back to the FBI twenty minutes later. Amanda was nervous and very quiet, but she didn't lose her head when she met Peter and Jones. She was a bit more open to Diana, though, dispite her being (as Mozzie would say) a pants Suit.

It was nearly an hour after that when Neal finally got back, followed by six timid-looking people. The forgers. They were led up to the confrence room, where Chris and Amanda had been sitting. The forgers were reluctant to take their seat, but seeing Amanda seemed to calm them a little. Geo and Neal were the only ones to acutally be at ease in the building. Peter walked in and everyone was introduced.

"Okay," Peter said. "You all know a man named Charlie Turnway?" All of them nodded, excluding Amanad who stiffened, just as she had when Chris mentioned him. "We think he's trying to frame all of you for turning down job offers. Does anyone know where he might be?" Everyone shook their heads. Peter sighed, but opened his mouth to speak, though he never got the chance.

At that instant, every phone belonging to a person sitting at the table (Peter was standing) went off. Confused, everyone pulled a phone from their pocket to see that they had received a text message. After extanging a glance with her father, Chris pressed 'read,' as did everyone else.

_I've given all of you (with one exception) the chance to join my team. By now, the feds will be on your tail. Meet me at the following adress tomorrow night at eight. We'll work something out and there won't be any trouble. CT_

At the bottom was an address. Chris was confused. She wasn't a forger (well, not paintings anyway). She was a good painter, yes, but never forged anything... Why was she getting this text. Was she the exception. While she was thinking, Neal grabbed her phone and read the message, which, judging by his reaction, was the same as his.

Peter was just as confused as the rest of them. He had no clue what was going on... because he hadn't seen the text. When he caught Peter's eye, Neal threw his phone to the agent, who caught it and read it quickly.

"Wait, this doesn't make sense," he said, tossing it back. "Why would we be after Chris?" Then Jones walked in.

"Peter," he said hastily, "there was another museum robbery. We checked to see if it was the same deal, which it was."

"What were the initals?" Peter asked, but already knowing the answer.

"CC," Jones said, his tone grim. This was not good.


	18. Promises

A/N: This one's mostly filler/fluff. It's gonna be a little short, too. Sorry. Hope you've been liking the story though. It's almost at the end (Aww!). Let me know what you think of it! -A

Chapter 18: Promises

"You're not going," Neal said with finality in his voice.

"Why?" she asked, venom coloring _her _tone.

"It could be dangerous. The FBI would never put a minor needlessly in harms way." She crossed her arms. "Look," Neal said. "We're going to go in, get proof of the forgery ring, maybe the murder Amanda mentioned, and the robberies. Then they're going to arrest him. That's it."

"Fine."

"I can call Sara. You two can talk while I'm gone."

"Okay," she agreed, not really caring either way. He smiled and kissed her on top of the head.

"I'll see you when I get back."

"See ya." Then the door was closed. Sighing, she plopped down on the couch and began flipping through channels on the TV.

WC

"You nervous?" Peter asked Neal.

"No. I'm just worried things might turn violent if the wrong thing is said. I don't want anyone to get hurt."

"Everything will be fine. I'll have your back, like always." Neal smiled, but it was off.

"Peter, could you do me a favor?"

"That depends on what you want," Peter told him.

"If things _do _turn violent... I know it's a lot to ask, but if something ever happens... would you and El take care of Chris? I don't want her to have to hear whatever vile things her mother has to say about me for the rest of her life."

"Of course. You're family, Neal. That means _she's _family too." Neal smiled again, a grateful, 'you're the best' smile before standing up. Peter held up the key to Neal's anklet and the con put his leg on the chair to let his friend remove it.

"Let's do this!"


	19. Danger

Chapter 19: Danger

Sara got to Neal's not long after the con man left. Things were a bit odd at first, but they started talking and eventually, conversation was flowing natuarlly.

It was nearly eight before anything happened. There was a knock on the door. Confused, Chris got up and pulled it open, revealing a worked-up Mozzie. He let himself in before Chris could open her mouth.

"Where's Neal?" he asked before anyone else could say anything.

"He and the other forgers went undercover to bring down Turnway," she told him, still confused. "Why?"

"I just heard from a reliable source that Turnway isn't planning on recruting them," Mozzie said.

"Then what?"

"He's going to kill them. Tell the Suit to get them out!" Eyes wide, Chris pulled out her phone and dialed Peter's number. Sara was standing near the couch, not sure what to do.

"Peter," Chris said as soon as the agent picked up.

_"What's the matter, Chris?"_

"Mozzie just got to June's. He said he heard that Turnway is planning on killing them, not recruting them," she explained in a hurry.

_"Okay, we'll tread carefully,"_ he said. _"I'll pull them out at the first sign of danger." _That didn't seem good enough, but she didn't argue. There was no way she'd be able to change his mind. Instead she muttered a good bye and hung up.

"What did he say?" Sara asked, concern in her tone.

"That they'd be careful and get them out if there was any sign of danger."

"What?" Mozzie exclaimed. "They might as well start digging graves!"

"Calm down, Moz," Chris said. "I'm sure Peter knows what he's doing." But she didn't believe her own words.

"I wish we knew what was going on..." Sara said wistfully. This made an evil smile spread across Chris' face.

"I know where to go if you want a closer view." Mozzie and Sara responding smiles matched hers.

WC

And that's how the three of them ended up in an alley, watching the warehouse. If anything happened, they would know. Either someone would run in, or someone would run out. It was dark, so no one would see them, and they were being quiet enough not to be heard.

But that didn't mean that someone else was being silent too. From behind her, she heard whispers. Not loud enough to make out what was being said, but enough to know they weren't alone.

"What time is it?" Sara asked in nearly inaudible whisper.

"Don't you have a phone?" Mozzie hissed.

"It died. What about you?"

"I left it a Neal's," Mozzie admitted. Chris was about to pull hers out when she got an idea.

"I think I dropped mine," she breathed. "I'm going to go see if I can find it." Sara nodded and Chris took off slowly and silently down the alley. There was a dull _thud! _that told her someone closed a door. She walked over to the only door in the alley and tried the knob. It was locked. She bit her lip, then got an idea.

She pulled the bobby pin from her hair and put it in the lock. It was slow work, but she managed the unlock the door and slipped quietly in. It was a long, dim hallway that greeted her on the other side. She walked down the hall, careful in case the floor boards squeaked. At the end of the hall was a door that was open just a crack. She could see a large window that had a prefect view of the warehouse they had been watching. Two men sat, facing the window, talking.

"How long?" one man asked.

"Patience," the other hissed. "It won't be long now. And when the warehouse goes up, our work will be complete." Chris' breath caught in her throat. They were going to blow the warehouse up... The second man said something, but Chris didn't hear what. She turned tail and made for the door, caution all but forgotten. As soon as she had the door closed behind her, she pulled her phone out and was running back to the others.

"Peter," she all but shouted, making the other two jump. "They're going to blow the warehouse up!"

_"What?" _he shouted. But he wasn't the only one, Mozzie and Sara inquired the same thing. _"How do you know?" _

"I just heard two men talking about it!"

_"Are you sure that's what they said?" _he asked.

"Well, unless you can think of another meaning of 'when the warehouse goes up,'" she told him scratchingly. "Get them out!" But Peter was way ahead of her.

_"Neal,"_ she heard faintly, _"get out. Now... Neal? Neal! Get everyone out! Can you hear me? _He would have continued, but there was something that cut him off.

_Ba-boom! _The ground shook under her feet, threatening to knock her to the ground. There was a blaze, lighting the night sky. Her eyes were locked on it, not believeing what she was seeing. Tears streamed from her eyes as she watched the building burn.

"No!" she shouted as the phone slipped from her hands. "NO!" She collapsed on the ground, crying. Agents were streaming from everywhere, not sure what to do. Then there were stong hands on her shoulder.

"Chris?" she heard a gentle voice say, but it was a million miles away. Her eyes were still staring at the blaze. She could hardly understand what had happened. Her father, Neal Caffrey, was in that building. Then it exploded... he was... dead.

But he couldn't be dead. He just couldn't. You can't kill Neal Caffrey, ask anyone who's ever tried. He's just too lucky. But now... there was no way he could have survived. But he couldn't be dead... He couldn't be.


	20. After the Fact

A/N: Bum bum buhhh! I told you it was an epic evil ending! This will be the last chapter before the sequel. Hope you've enjoyed the story! -A

Chapter 20: After the Fact

Neal was dead. There was no way around that fact, Chris soon realized. All the forgers were. Yet, she couldn't come to terms with what had happened. No one could.

Mozzie was hardly seen after that. He had no reason to hang around. Peter was devestated, like he lost a son. El's reaction was similar, like she was the mother bear who couldn't protect her cub. Sara burried herself in her work, trying to distract herself from the greif. For June, it was like losing Byron all over again. Diana and Jones lost the laughter that had been brought in with the convict. Even Hughes was sad. But no one took it as bad as Chris. She became a walking Zombie. Not even Gia, who lost her older brother, was a depressed.

WC

There had been one thing to survive the blast, though there was a giant burn hole on top. Neal's hat. It was given to Chris. Neal's desk more or less became a memorial to the lost consultant. His picture was there, along with photos of him with various agents. Someone raided his tie drawer and put the best one on the table. There were also exquisite 'doodles' someone had found in a different drawer scattered all around. Then, in front of everything, was the tracker. The one thing that made his time with them possible.

WC

Chris moved her things from June's only a few days later. Peter was taking them to his house, where she would be moved into the guest room. Chris was standing in Neal's apartment, looking around. Everything she saw made her heart hurt. She looked to the hat in her hands, tears welling in her eyes, and threw it on the table where she knew no one would move it. Then she wiped away a single tear and walked out

WC

Everyone had such nice things to say about Neal at the funeral. How, though he was a criminal, he was a good man, the nicest most of them had ever met, truely a diamond in the rough, one in a million. Chris tried to speak, but simply broke down in tears and ran away. Peter found her crying in a park not far from the grave yard. He picked her up when she wouldn't (possibly couldn't) stand and carried her to the car. Honestly, she wasn't that big...

WC

The only place Chris could find peace, oddly, was in Neal's apartment. June liked the company, needless to say. A few people dropped by from time to time, but she went there almost every day. Anything to distract from the pain.

WC

As soon as Chris returned to school, she gave up her 'law-breaking' ways. No more fake report cards or forged signatures or homework/test answers. She quit cold turkey. As did her friends, because that's just how close they all were. She became a model student. Straight A's, never got in trouble, nearly perfect attendence... That's what happens when you live your life in auto-pilot.

WC

All in all, Chris' world was shattered into pieces when her father died. She was trapped in a tail-spin and the only thing that could be done was wait for the crash. It was inevitable. The question wasn't 'if,' it was 'when.' And when it did happen, no one knew what to expect. So, for the time being, she would go through life day by day and try to hold herself together. But that was like everything else in life, easier said than done.

* * *

><p>AN: So, that's the end. Keep a look out for the sequel, 'Aftershock.' I'll try to get it up in the next couple of days. So, you see the review button down there? Yeah, he's lonely, why not go and give him a little love? Until next time! -A


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